The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Calluna vulgaris and will be referred to hereafter by its cultivar name, ‘Nr 580’. ‘Nr 580’ is a new cultivar of evergreen shrub grown for use as a landscape plant.
The new Invention arose as the result of an ongoing controlled breeding program by the Inventor in Wezep, The Netherlands. The goal of the breeding program is to develop new cultivars of Calluna that combine an upright growth habit and flowers that exhibit strong, bright colors with a bud flowering habit. ‘Nr 580’ was selected as a single unique plant by the Inventor in September 2005 in a test garden in his nursery in Wezep, The Netherlands. ‘Nr 580’ arose from a cross made in September 2003 between a proprietary female parent designated by accession No. K23618 and a proprietary male parent designated by accession No. 23E27 (both unnamed and unpatented).
Asexual reproduction of the new cultivar was first accomplished by the Inventor using stem cuttings in September of 2005 in Wezep, The Netherlands. The characteristics of ‘Nr 580’ have been determined to be stable and are reproduced true to type in successive generations.